Orioles Look to Sweep Oakland Behind Baz's Arm Advantage

The Orioles roll into the Coliseum looking to make it two straight after squeaking past Oakland 4-3 yesterday, and they're catching the A's at the perfect time. Shane Baz takes the ball for Baltimore sporting a 4.04 ERA that looks downright Cy Young-caliber compared to what Oakland's trotting out there. Jack Perkins and his 6.68 ERA? That's not a typo. The right-hander has been batting practice all season, and facing an Athletics squad allowing a .270 opponent average with a bloated 5.46 team ERA means Baz should cruise through five or six.

Sure, Baltimore's offense isn't lighting up scoreboards at .237 as a team, but they don't need to be the '27 Yankees when Oakland's pitching staff hemorrhages runs like this. The Orioles are a respectable 6-3 on the road, and while both clubs enter 3-2 in their last five, Baltimore's got the momentum and the mound mismatch.

DarkHorse likes the Orioles at -142, and frankly, laying that number feels reasonable when your starter holds a 2.64 ERA edge. Oakland's shown they can hang around—yesterday proved that—but asking Perkins to outduel Baz is asking for a miracle. Take Baltimore to complete the mini-sweep and cash another road win before September arrives.